Malaysian share prices closed 0.29 percent lower on Thursday in cautious trade ahead of utility giant Tenaga Nasional's first quarter results, ending a nine-day rally, dealers said.
"The market was just seeing a little bit of profit-taking after going up for a few days. But big caps, such as Sime Darby, continued to see buying support. "It was not a broad-based sell-down," said Michael Lai, associate director of investment at Fortress Capital Asset Management.
The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index closed down 3.38 points at 1,179.66 and trading volume was 1.66 billion shares valued at 2.84 billion ringgit (811 million dollars) while losers led gainers 551 to 366. At the close, the ringgit was quoted at 3.5015/5065 to the dollar. Among index heavyweights, Tenaga was flat at 12.20 ringgit ahead of its first quarter results.
After the market close, the national utility said it posted a net profit of 1.25 billion ringgit in the first quarter to November against 595.6 million a year earlier.
Telekom Malaysia fell 0.10 ringgit to 9.75, while Maybank gained 0.20 at 12.50. Genting was lower on profit-taking, snapping a two-day gain. The stock fell 0.75 ringgit to 6.85. Proton fell 0.05 ringgit to 6.85 after the auto association said it lost its top sales position to Perodua.
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